Kenya salvage pride but hard work remains

All-rounder Nehemiah Odhiambo of Kenya drives through the off-side against Nepal during the third place playoff final at ICC World Cricket League Division Two tournament in Windhoek, Namibia on January 24. Looking on is Nepal wicket keeper Subash Prasad Khakurel (R). PHOTO | ICC

What you need to know:

  • Batting first after losing the toss, the early part of Kenya’s innings saw Narendra ‘Kallis’ Patel take charge, scoring 44 before he was the fourth man out. His wicket came in the middle of three to fall with the score on 69.
  • Captain Rakep Patel and all-rounder Nelson Mandela Odhiambo got the Kenyan innings back on track, putting on 71 for the sixth wicket before Rakep fell for 32.
  • Odhiambo finished as the top scorer, making 48 before he was bowled by Shakti Gauchan. Sompal Kami was the pick of the Nepali bowlers with 4-31 as Kenya made 208-9.

Despite not qualifying for the 2015/17 Division One International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cricket League (WCL) Championship and Intercontinental Cup (I-Cup), Kenya left the Namibian capital of Windhoek yesterday with their pride salvaged and reputation intact.

With the Division III relegation monster staring at them before their rubber against Nepal in the last round-robin encounter on Friday, Kenya were more than happy after beating Nepal for the second time in as many days in the third place play-off match.

“This wasn’t our target coming here but we will take it,” said Kenya coach Steve Tikolo.

“We have missed out on a ticket to the I-Cup, yet we have the necessary quality in our side to play there. But the guys deserve some credit.

They’ve rallied back in this tournament to ensure we at least stay in Division II. We will take it from here and see what the future has to offer.”

LOSING THE TOSS

Batting first after losing the toss, the early part of Kenya’s innings saw Narendra ‘Kallis’ Patel take charge, scoring 44 before he was the fourth man out. His wicket came in the middle of three to fall with the score on 69.

Captain Rakep Patel and all-rounder Nelson Mandela Odhiambo got the Kenyan innings back on track, putting on 71 for the sixth wicket before Rakep fell for 32.

Odhiambo finished as the top scorer, making 48 before he was bowled by Shakti Gauchan. Sompal Kami was the pick of the Nepali bowlers with 4-31 as Kenya made 208-9.

SIMILAR WAY

The Nepal innings started in a similar way to how it has throughout the tournament. Openers Sagar Pun and Subash Khakurel were both out cheaply, leaving their captain and player of the tournament Paras Khadka to rebuild the innings. It didn’t quite work out that way though, as Khadka was caught behind from his first ball.

Instead, Binod Bhandari and Gyanendra Malla set about taking the game the way of their team, putting on 107 for the fourth wicket before Malla was out for 48. Bhandari made 73, but from then on it was something of a procession. Nepal, cruising to victory at 162-4 with 17 overs still to come, were bowled out for 193 to lose by 15 runs thanks to Elijah Otieno’s bursting spell of 4 for 45.

Up next for Kenya is the African T20 qualifier in South Africa in March, from which two teams will head to global qualifiers in Ireland and Scotland.